'Island Schoolhouse' signing

Belfast — Beyond the Sea, 74 Main St., will host author Eva Murray for a talk, Q&A and book signing, of her new release, “Island Schoolhouse: One Room for All,” Friday, Oct. 5 from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

On six remote, windblown Maine islands, the children are still educated in one-room schools. After two mainland one-room schools closed in 2009, these islands maintain the last taxpayer-funded public one-room elementary schools in the state. But despite very small student populations and sometimes shrinking communities, these remaining schools are not slated to close … and they are among the most technologically savvy schools in the state, offering a culturally rich educational experience.

Murray moved to Matinicus in 1987 to teach in its one-room school, married and raised a family on the island and has served on the school board and volunteered in the school. She has traveled from island to island in Maine, visited two schools in the Moosehead Lake area just before they were closed and corresponded with one-room-school teachers in Alaska, Colorado, Montana and North Dakota, collecting the stories that tell how these small communities promise their handful of children a modern education within the context of a specialized and sometimes isolated lifestyle.

For more information, call 338-2100, send email to Info@BeyondTheSeaMaine.com or visit Beyond the Sea’s Facebook page.